Prime Minister's Office
English rendering of PM’s speech at the presentation of Yoga Awards
My cabinet colleague Mr. Shripad Yesso Naik on the stage, all the awardees, Professionals, Officers, Ladies and Gentlemen associated with AYUSH sector!
Coming to a program related to AYUSH and Yoga on the very next day of the launch of Fit India movement in the country, is a wonderful coincidence. AYUSH and Yoga are very important partners of the Fit India Movement.
Today there are three events. Two are associated with the awards and honors for our tradition and heritage and the third one is associated with the healthcare infrastructure. Today, 10 AYUSH Health and Wellness Centers have been launched in Haryana. I congratulate the people of Haryana for the same.
I have also got the opportunity to present awards to the practitioners of yoga, those who serve yoga, and to the friends and organizations who are promoting yoga worldwide. We have partners also from Italy and Japan who have been involved in the promotion of yoga for decades. Antonietta Rozzi has been promoting yoga through Sarva Yoga International across Europe for the past 4 decades. Similarly, Japan Yoga Niketan has thousands of yoga centers all over Japan. This institution is also doing a great job of keeping Japan free from diseases with the help of yoga for the last 4 decades. I congratulate all the awardees and wish them all success.
A short while ago, a postage stamp has also been released in the honor of 12 personalities who have enriched the AYUSH system. They are the ones who have devoted their entire lives to the treatment of people.
Some have made Yoga a medium while others have made Ayurveda the medium. Some people have served with Unani while some have freed the people from diseases using Homeopathy.
I would also congratulate the Department of Posts because issuing 12 stamps in a single set in India is a rare thing. I am sure that these Postal Stamps will help in developing new thinking in the countrymen towards AYUSH.
One of the postage stamps issued today honours Dinshaw Mehta. Dinshaw Mehta was also a physicist of Gandhiji and a dedicated worker of Naturopathy.
Gandhiji used to say - "Naturopathy is the way of living, not a method of treatment". He followed this practice and made the natural healing method the basis of his life.
What Gandhi learned was behind the rich heritage associated with Preventive and Curative Healthcare of India. We have thousands of years old Literature; the Vedas discuss about the treatment related to serious diseases. But unfortunately we have not been able to dovetail our ancient research and this treasure of knowledge with modernity.
We have tried to change this situation for the last 5 years. Under this, emphasis is being laid on making AYUSH an important part of India's healthcare system.
I have been told that the Sowa Rigpa system is included in the AYUSH system. Sowa Rigpa has become the sixth member of the AYUSH family after Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy. Heartiest congratulations to you for the same.
If India's healthcare system has to be transformed and if we want to build a healthy society, then we must work with a holistic thinking. The shared strength of traditional and modern treatment will have to be strengthened. If AYUSH and Modern Healthcare are equally developed together, only then we will be able to create better healthcare solutions.
Ayushman Bharat Yojana is the result of this idea. Under this, health and wellness centers are being set up keeping in mind Preventive Healthcare on one hand while on the other hand PM Jan Arogya Yojana is being run for the free treatment of serious illnesses.
This is a unique and unprecedented model of Health and Wellness Center, as well as Preventive and Affordable Healthcare. In these centers, there are measures for Prevention as well as cure.
While we are opening one and a half lakh health and wellness centers in the country, we have not forgotten about AYUSH. We have also set a target to build 12 thousand five hundred AYUSH centers across the country, out of which 10 AYUSH Health and Wellness Centers have been inaugurated today. We are trying to ensure that 4000 AYUSH centers are ready by this year.
As far as Affordability is concerned, Ayushman Bharat has given the assurance of better health to the poorest of the poor. Had all the patients who have received free treatment till now under the Ayushman Bharat scheme been not under its purview, they would have had to spend more than Rs.12 thousand crores. In a way, the savings of millions of poor families of the country has been Rs 12,000 crore.
You can imagine how difficult it was for the poor to get treatment when there was no scheme like that of Ayushman Bharat. The cost of treatment had made them poorer.
Besides Prevention and Affordability, work is progressing rapidly on the necessary infrastructure in the country. Two days ago, the government has also decided to set up 75 new Medical Colleges across the country. This is another big step towards the goal of establishing a Medical College in every district of the country.
This will not only increase the facilities for the treatment of serious diseases, but will also increase the number of seats for MBBS by about 16 thousand seats. The recently enacted National Medical Commission Act is also going to play an effective role in boosting the medical education and related infrastructure in the country.
Besides modern medicine, necessary reforms are being made in the AYUSH education system to ensure that more and better professionals enter the AYUSH sector . The kind of technology being used in particular will help in preparing AYUSH for the future. The idea of a AYUSH Grid is also appreciated. This will help in removing the silos mentality associated with the AYUSH sector.
The benefits of this modern infrastructure of AYUSH and medicine, are also widespread. Besides healthcare, these are proving to be huge means of employment generation in India.
There is a possibility of getting medical and Para Medical education near home especially in small villages, towns, Tier 2 and Tier - 3 cities,
With the creation of new hospitals, a whole medical ecosystem is developing there. Consequently, young friends from less educated background to degree, diploma holders are also getting new employment opportunities.
Today, as we are moving ahead with the target of $ 5 trillion economy, AYUSH is going to play a major role in it. In the coming few years, the Preventive Healthcare market in India is also going to expand a lot. This is a big opportunity.
We have to develop our Preventive Healthcare System as an attractive brand for the whole world. We have entered into agreements with 17 countries of the world; and right now we need to speed it up.
Yoga has become an important part of life all over the world today. In the last 5 years, the enthusiasm shown for Yoga on the International Day of Yoga is unprecedented in the world. Today Yoga is becoming a great medium to connect not only wellness but also the world with India.
Now, apart from yoga, we have to make efforts to deliver other genres of AYUSH all over the world.
We also have to change our habit of forgetting our old traditions and then learning it afresh when someone else tells us about it.
Let me give you an example.
Today we see that the world has started adopting the food that we gave up. Barley, jowar, ragi, kodo, sama, millet, sawa, many such cereals were once part of our food. But gradually it disappeared from our plates. This food was tagged with poverty.
Now we can see that this nutritious diet is in demand all over the world. Now a days when we go to online shopping portals, we are often surprised. The grain, which was not ready to be taken for free, is being sold at the rate of hundreds of rupees per kg.
Now the time has come to replenish this treasure of Nutrition. The country will have to work hard on the Millet Revolution. Farmers should grow Millets and our industries related to food processing should create such attractive products from them, which will be liked by every generation and will also become a part of their diet.
The important aspect is that millets can grow in all types of soil and also take less water. That is, India has a huge advantage. We can produce millets for the whole world.
This will help India to become the brand of Preventive Healthcare; it will help serve humanity and will help increase the income of the farmers.
There is another aspect of AYUSH on which we need to work more seriously. Medical tourism in India is growing continuously. But it still has a lot of scope. All the necessary infrastructure for medical and meditation, it is being developed with the help of state governments.
I will make a special request to the Ministry of AYUSH to keep contacting different ministries and departments in this regard. We have to take medical tourism to every part of the country, especially to the North East.
When we make all these efforts collectively, our traditional medical practices will not only develop good health but also prosperity for the 21st century India, New India. Finally, once again I congratulate all the award winners.
You should keep doing the same work to keep the country and the world fit. With this expectation, I offer my gratitude to you all.
Thank you !